Hoisin Beef Noodles

Another asian dish for your ethnic artillery.

Hoisin Beef Noodles w/Edamame

8 oz. of soba or linguine noodles ($.99)

3 tbsp. lime juice ($1.19)

3 tbsp. hoisin sauce ($3.47)

2 tsp. chili garlic sauce ($2.49)

1 tsp. cornstarch (bulk item)

2 tsp. sesame oil (you can sub veg or olive if needed) (bulk item)

8 oz. flank steak, trimmed and thinly sliced ($3.79)

1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced ($1.39)

10oz. package of shelled edamame, thawed ($3.49)

1 tsp. ground ginger or 1 tbsp. fresh minced ginger (bulk item)

1/2 c. cilantro, chopped ($.69)

Cook noodles according to package, drain, and set aside.  Whisk lime juice, hoisin sauce, chili garlic sauce, and cornstarch in a small bowl.  Heat oil over large skillet over med-high heat, add steak, and cook through.  Transfer steak to plate, and add bell pepper to same pan, cooking 1-2 minutes.  Then, add edamame, cooking another 2 minutes.  Add ginger, stir for 30 seconds, then add sauce and beef to skillet.  Stir until sauce has thickened a bit, then remove from heat and enjoy! Makes 4 servings ($17.50/$4.38 per serving)

Curry in a Hurry!

After a day full of hiking and zumba, nothing sounded better that cold winter night then a big bowl of curry.  And so it was done...and it was awesome.

Winter Veggie Curry
1 1/2 tsp. olive oil (bulk item)
1 c. sweet potatoes, peeled/diced ($1.49)
1 c. cauliflower florets ($1.50)
1 tbsp. curry powder ($1.99)
1/2 c. vegetable/chicken stock ($2.50)
1/4 tsp. salt (bulk item)
1 1/2 tsp. garlic, minced (bulk item)
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, drained ($1.39)
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained ($.99)
1/4 c. plain 2% greek yogurt ($3.29)
1 c. brown/white rice (bulk item)
Heat oil in large pan over medium-high heat.  Add sweet potato to pan, sauteing for 3 minutes. 
Decrease heat to medium, and add cauliflower and curry powder, cooking for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Add broth, salt, garlic, chickpeas, and tomatoes, stir, and bring to a boil.  Cover and reduce to a simmer, allowing to cook for 10 minutes, or until all vegetables are tender.  Stir occasionally through simmering.  Stir in greek yogurt, then we added some unsalted almonds in at the end for some crunch, cashews would work as well, and I highly recommend the addition of nuts!
Serve over rice and enjoy! Makes 4 servings ($13.15/$3.28 per serving).

Porque no los dos?!

Tonight, Alli and I set out on a mission... to create a Mexican inspired dish out of simple ingredients we had left from the weeks grocery trip without a recipe. All I can say is, mission complete!

Mexican Stir Fry w/ Rice

2 red bell peppers, sliced fajita style

1 yellow onion

3 roasted green chilies

1/2 lb frozen corn

1 cup steamed white rice

1.5 lbs chicken breast

1 tbsp garlic salt

1/2 tbsp chili powder

2 tsp black pepper

1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes

2 tbsp olive oil

Cook rice per directions on package. Set aside. Slice red peppers, onions, and chicken fajita style. Combine spices in small bowl and toss chicken to coat. Heat olive oil in large skillet. Add chicken and cook until mostly done. Add vegetables, cover and cook for 5-7 minutes. Once veggies and chicken is cooked, make a bed of rice and add fajita mixture. ENJOY!

Chinese Take-Out Night (Homemade Style)!

No wait take-out!

I can't think of anyone that can resist the convenience and deliciousness that is chinese take-out.  If I could have my way, I would probably cycle through cashew, general tso, and sesame chicken every single night of the week.  Ok, maybe that's an exaggeration, but you catch my drift, chinese food is basically the foreign king of comfort food.  Us girls are not exempt from this addiction, so we decided to try and make our own chinese take-out, and of course, make it healthy.  I must say, it was quite a finger-lickin' success.
Kung Pao Shrimp
1 lb. peeled, deveined shrimp
1 tbsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. sesame oil
1 bunch of green onions
4 garlic cloves (4 tsp. minced)
1 tsp. hot chili sauce
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
2 tbsp. soy sauce
2 tsp. sugar
1 c. edamame
1/4 dry roasted peanuts (optional)


Cook rice ahead of time (according to package) to save prep. time.  Also steam edamame ahead, according to directions, season with salt and pepper.  Combine shrimp in bowl with cornstarch and toss to coat.  In a different bowl, combine chili sauce, ginger, rice wine vinegar, soy sauce, and sugar, mixing thoroughly.
Heat sesame oil in large skillet over medium-high heat and add in green onions and garlic, stirring constantly to prevent the garlic from burning.  Add sauce and shrimp to skillet, stirring well to help thicken sauce.  Cook until shrimp is bright pink/orange in color.  Serve with rice and edamame, and dig in! Serves 3

Ramen that You'll Want to Eat

Szechuan Vegetable Lo Mein

What's the one thing, dreaded or glorified, that every college student has in their pantry? RAMEN.  While this thrifty meal option is, in my opinion, horrific on every level when made as directed, us girls at Campus Cuisine have discovered an utterly delicious way to use the ramen in a tasty and quick asian dish.

Szechuan Vegetable Lo Mein

2 can (14 oz. each) vegetable or chicken broth ($2.50)

2 tsp. minced garlic (bulk item)

1 tsp. ginger (bulk item)

1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes (bulk item)

1 c. edamame ($1.99)

1 red bell pepper ($1.25)

1 can of sliced water chestnuts ($1.29)

3 carrots, peeled and sliced ($1.50)

3 packets of ramen (discard seasoning packets) ($.33)

3 tbsp. soy sauce ($2.59)

1 tbsp. dark sesame oil ($3.99)

1/4 c. thinly sliced green onions ($.59)

[optional] sunflower seeds for garnish

Cut up all vegetables and set aside in a bowl (except green onions).  To save time, you can replace all the vegetables with a 16 oz. package of any frozen vegetable medley.  

Combine broth, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes in a large pot.  Cover and bring to boil over high heat.  Add veggies and noodles to skillet, cover, and return to boil.  Once brought to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and let simmer uncovered for 5-6 minutes or until vegetables and noodles are tender, stirring occasionally.

Stir in soy sauce and sesame oil; cook for 3 more minutes, then stir in the green onions, and ladle into bowls.  Top with toasted sunflower seeds if desired, and enjoy! However, a word of caution...this dish is served hot and is also relatively spicy.  If you're living in a house without air conditioning, I recommend saving this dish for the fall or winter time.  We learned this the hard way, when we were struggling with the conflicting desires to devour this awesome meal, or run to stick our heads under cold water from the sink.  Definitely a winter meal for us non-air-conditioned college kids! Makes 6 servings ($16.03/$2.67 per serving)

Latin Spice Night! Ole!

Tasty tilapia tacos w/pineapple salsa, mmm.

It's a Tuesday night, and three roommates are stirring in the kitchen... as well as chopping, grilling, and seasoning. Tonight's menu: fish tacos complete with pineapple jalapeno salsa, roasted miniature red and yellow peppers, and, continuing with the theme of last night's scrumptious concoction, tilapia! (If you plan out your meals ahead you can purchase enough fish to last through both of these recipes! We did!) Tonight's meal was an epic success! Low-fat, low-cal, and freakin' delicious!

Bobby Flay ain't got nothin' on us.

Some tricks to shortening the length of time required to cook this meal are simultaneous preparation and a deliberate order to the cooking of ingredients. For example, the Campus Cuisine Crew was able to cut down the prep time by setting up the salsa ahead of time to allow for the marriage of flavor, then chopping all the veggies while heating the corn, roasting the peppers and onions side-by-side while warming the tortillas, and saving the fish for last.

Pineapple Jalapeno Salsa

Juice of 1 lime

1/2 tsp salt, or to taste

1/2 tsp pepper, or to taste

1/2 cup chopped sweet onion

1 jalapeno, chopped

2 cups fresh pineapple, finely chopped

Cut pineapple, onion and jalapeno (DON'T TOUCH YOUR FACE!). Combine in bowl then add salt, pepper and lime. Let sit for 30 minutes.

Fish Tacos

6 wheat tortillas ($1.69)

4 tilapia fillets ($8.13)

8 oz small bell peppers, sliced into strips ($2.99)

1 jalapeno, sliced ($.10)

1/2 large sweet onion, sliced ($.88)

1 1/2 frozen corn ($.79)

salt, to taste (bulk item)

pepper, to taste (bulk item)

2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (bulk item)

First, remove corn from bag and place in pan over low heat. Cut peppers, jalapenos, and onion and grill. Heat tortillas on grill as well. Remove all ingredients from grill. Combine veggies in serving dish and season with salt and pepper to taste. Baste tilapia in olive oil and place in large frying pan over medium heat. Season with salt and pepper (amount to user's discretion). Cook for 7 minutes each side or until fish is cooked all the way through with no pink remaining.
Serves 3 (2 tacos each) $14.58/$4.86 per serving


We ended up having a bit of the veggie mix left over, so being thrifty college students, we opted for chicken fajita paninis for the next night's meal.  This super easy and cheap recipe is the perfect way to use up leftovers in a yummy sandwich.

Chicken Fajita Panini
3 frozen chicken breasts
leftover veggie mix from recipe above (about 1 1/2 cups)
3 slices of harvati cheese
dash of salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes
6 slices of bread of choice (we used french)
1 tbsp. of olive oil


Defrost the chicken in the microwave, then place in a plastic bag with desired amount of salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.  Cover chicken evenly.  Then place the oven in a pan with 1 tbsp. of olive oil, and cook through on both sides.  Warm up the remaining veggie mix in the microwave. Then it's time to construct your sandwiches! Brush the bread with a bit of olive oil, and arrange the chicken, veggies, and cheese.  Throw it on a panini press or grill pan, and when the bread is nice and toasty, take it off and enjoy!
Makes 3 sandwiches